Pillow case with stress relieving insert

ABSTRACT

A pillow case having a stress foam insert around the opening edge, a closed edge, or both. The stress foam insert for use in achieving stress relief and thereby promoting restful sleep by squeezing and releasing the foam insert. Attaching the stress foam insert to the pillow case allows for ease of access.

PRIORITY CLAIM

In accordance with 37 C.F.R. § 1.76, a claim of priority is included in an Application Data Sheet filed concurrently herewith. Accordingly, the present invention claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/058,156 entitled “PILLOW CASE WITH STRESS RELIEVING INSERT” filed Jul. 29, 2020. The contents of the above referenced application are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to pillow cases, and in particular, to a pillow case having a foam insert around the opening edge of the pillow case for use in achieving stress relief and thereby promoting restful sleep by squeezing and releasing the foam insert.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many people suffer with the inability to relax and fall asleep for many reasons, including the stresses of everyday life, intrusion of thoughts, and muscle and joint aches and pains. Many people find relief of stress with the use of a therapeutic “stress ball” which encompasses a semi-soft foam ball which is squeezed and released repeatedly. The stress ball is proven to provide therapeutic relief from mental or physical stress by repetition of squeezing and releasing a foam ball.

While the stress ball is a useful therapeutic tool, the use of such a device while lying in bed in hopes of the device inducing sleep is impractical. The stress ball is not held in a stationary position and can easily be dropped or otherwise displaced. For instance, if the stress ball helped the individual to fall asleep, the stress ball will drop from the individual's hand the moment the individual falls asleep. Hopefully the individual may not move much during sleep and the stress ball will be easily located when the individual awakes. More realistically the individual will toss and turn during night and may want to access the stress ball should the individual awaken during the night. In this example the individual may need to search for the stress ball in the darkness wherein the ball could be entangled within the bed sheets. More critically the stress ball could fall off the bed and, should the individual need to leave the bed for use of the bathroom or get up in the morning, runs the risk on stepping upon the stress ball which could easily lead to a slip and fall injury. In addition, leaving a conventional stress ball anywhere in a home becomes fair game for the family dog.

PRIOR ART REFERENCES

U.S. Pat. No. 5,708,999 discloses an adjustable support pillow having at least one bolster portion along one edge of the support pillow, and an inflatable under-pillow. The under-pillow comprises at least one row of a plurality of parallel inflatable air chambers. Each air chamber within a row is in fluid communication with each adjacent air chamber in the same row. Each of the rows is in fluid communication with a header and the header is connectable to an air source by a nozzle.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,513,001 discloses a pillow with an attached blanket. The pillow comprises a body with one or more inwardly-turned arms. One edge of the blanket is attached to the pillow, and a pouch is formed in the pillow so that blanket is stowable inside. A pocket may be included for holding an MP3 player or other accessory. A flap wraps around the body to cover the pouch opening and the accessory pocket when the blanket is stowed.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,234,732 discloses an orthopedic pillow having a plurality of foam layers. The foam layers include a top foam layer made of memory foam constructed and arranged to receive a user's head. A middle foam layer made of latex foam, the middle layer defining a central opening, and a bottom layer made of latex foam. The orthopedic pillow also has a high density foam tube affixed to an edge of the top foam layer. The high density foam tube is constructed and arranged to support the user's neck.

U.S. 2019/0320827 discloses a sensory stress relief aid having a pillow with a plurality of different surfaces disposed on an outer layer. Each surface corresponds to a different tactile feel, such as velvet or fur. Additionally, the outer layer encloses a plurality of inner layers disposed within the pillow, wherein each inner layer comprises a different degree of firmness. A motor attached to an inflatable bladder disposed within the plurality of inner layers is configured to alternately inflate and deflate to simulate breathing. At least one speaker is included and adapted to emit soothing sounds such as nature noises and guided meditation instructions.

U.S. Pat. No. 10,314,418 discloses a pillow that includes a first pillow half having an outer surface and an inner surface having a first cavity formed therein filled with a first filler material, and a second pillow half having an outer surface and an inner surface having a second cavity formed filled with a second filler material.

U.S. Pat. No. 10,292,509 discloses a pillow for seating on a base surface. The pillow includes a top surface having a negative parabolic shape or a convex shape relative to the base surface and a bottom surface having a convex shape relative to the base surface. The pillow includes up to five zones I-V, with a center zone I being designed for side sleepers, the two adjacent zones II, III being designed for back sleepers, and the two adjacent, outer zones IV, V being designed for stomach sleepers. The pillow may have different sections and parts in order to vary the feel of the pillow.

What is needed in the industry is a pillow case having a “stress ball” attached thereto, namely a foam insert around the opening edge of the pillow case for use in squeezing and releasing the foam insert in a stationary location to help an individual relieve stress and fall asleep. If the individual wakes up through the night and begins to feel restlessness and sleeplessness, the stress relieving foam insert is readily available for use in helping the individual to fall back to sleep.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Disclosed is a conventional pillow case having semi-soft foam insert formed along the rim or end of the case for use providing a method for stress relief.

An objective of the invention is to provide a stationary stress relieving aid which can be squeezed and released by an individual prior to falling asleep, to enable the individual to concentrate on the repeated squeezing motion to alleviate stress and promote restful sleep.

Another objective of the instant invention is for the stress relieving foam insert to be stationary, attached within the open edge of a pillow case, so as to prevent loss of the stress reliever through the night.

Another objective of the instant invention is for the stress relieving foam insert to be stationary, attached within the closed end of a pillow case, so as to prevent loss of the stress reliever through the night.

Still another objective of the instant invention is for the stress relieving foam insert to be stationary, attached within the open end and closed end of a pillow case.

Other objectives and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with any accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention. Any drawings contained herein constitute a part of this specification, include exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and illustrate various objects and features thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pillow case with the memory foam insert formed along an open end and a closed end.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Detailed embodiments of the instant invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific functional and structural details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representation basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure.

Referring to FIG. 1, disclosed is a pillow case 10 of the instant invention defined by piece of fabric with an upper surface 12 and a lower surface 14. The upper surface 12 and the lower surface 14 are joined together by a first sewn seam 16, a second sewn seam 18, a back sewn seam 20. The pillow case forming a front open edge 22 and a closed rear edge 23 forming a cavity for insertion of a conventional pillow 25. In one embodiment a stress foam insert ring 24 having a size of about ¾ inches thick by 2 inches wide is attached to the front open edge 22 by means of either sewing the foam insert ring 24 to the open edge 22 or placing the insert ring 24 into the folded front open edge 22 and forming an insert seam 26 to prevent removal of the insert ring 24.

A stress foam insert strip 28 having a size of about ¾ inches thick by 2 inches wide may also be attached to the rear of the pillow case adjacent the rear edge 23 and captured therein by use of a back sewn seam 20. The instant invention allows placement of the stress foam in either the proximal end or distal end, or in both the proximal and distal end of the pillow case.

The foam insert is made from a biocompatible, non-toxic material capable of providing a desired resistance. In the preferred embodiment the foam is a food-grade rubber, natural rubber, silicone rubber, silicone and latex, or any other FDA-approved rubber, latex or suitable polymer.

The resistance provided is similar to a stress ball and can be measured as the force per unit area required to deform the device so that outer edge of the foam and be squeezed to a point where they just about touch each other. The foam is soft enough that laying on it would not disturb sleep but provide progressively sufficient resistance wherein an elderly individual would be able to cause partial collapse of the foam, and a muscular individual would be challenged to completely collapse the foam. The resistance can be measured by placing the foam on a scale and pressing down on the foam with a one inch square surface area to and determine the weight on the scale at which the top and bottom walls of the foam nearly touch each other. When the scale is calibrated in pounds, the resistance associated with the foam is expressed as pounds per square inch (psi). When resistance is measured in this manner, the preferred foam will have a resistance between about 20 psi and about 100 psi. Preferred resistance is between about 40 psi but can vary based upon the diameter of the foam, if round, oval, or another shape employed. The resistance of a device depends on the size of the foam and the material from which the foam is made. One of skill in the art can readily vary these parameters to produce the devices of the invention.

In use an individual would employ the pillow case in the ordinary and conventional manner by placing a pillow within the chamber formed by the pillow case. The pillow case having either a continuous ring of the stress relieving foam formed in the proximal edge, or one elongated piece of foam formed in the distal end. The individual can grasp or clench the foam with multiple repetitions, such repetitions can be with a planned number of set or until the individual falls asleep. Should the individual wake up during the night and become restless, the individual will easily find the stress relieving foam as it will remain in the pillow case.

The use of the word “a” or “an” when used in conjunction with the term “comprising” in the claims and/or the specification may mean “one,” but it is also consistent with the meaning of “one or more” or “at least one.” The term “about” means, in general, the stated value plus or minus 5%. The terms “comprise” (and any form of comprise, such as “comprises” and “comprising”), “have” (and any form of have, such as “has” and “having”), “include” (and any form of include, such as “includes” and “including”) and “contain” (and any form of contain, such as “contains” and “containing”) are open-ended linking verbs.

It is to be understood that while a certain form of the invention is illustrated, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, and that the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and any drawings/figures included herein.

One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as those inherent therein. The embodiments, methods, procedures and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments, are intended to be exemplary, and are not intended as limitations on the scope. Changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the invention and are defined by the scope of the appended claims. Although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A stress relief pillow case comprising: a pillow case formed from a piece of fabric material having a upper surface and a lower surface joined together by at least one sewn edge seam forming a tube shape, and a back sewn edge seam closing an end of the tube shape to form a cavity wherein the pillow case has an open end and a closed end; and a stress foam insert secured to said open end.
 2. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 1 wherein said stress foam insert is secured along an inner edge of said open end.
 3. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 1 wherein said stress foam insert is placed within a folded front open edge and secured thereto by placing an insert seam to prevent removal of the insert ring.
 4. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 1 wherein said stress foam insert is about ¾ inches thick by 2 inches wide and forms a continuous strip around said open end of said pillow case.
 5. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 1 including a stress form insert is positioned along said closed end.
 6. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 5 wherein said stress foam insert is about ¾ inches thick by 2 inches wide and extends between the side edges of said pillow case.
 7. The stress relief pillow case according to claim 1 wherein said stress foam insert is selected from a group consisting of: food-grade rubber, natural rubber, silicone rubber, or silicone and latex. 